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buy this book Book Review of Clarke, Philip: Where the Ancestors Walked: Australia as an Aboriginal landscape Date reviewed: 2003-11-26 Reviewer: Laurent Dousset Author(s): Clarke, Philip Year of publication: 2003 Title: Where the Ancestors Walked: Australia as an Aboriginal landscape Place of publication: Crows Nest (NSW) Publisher: Allen and Unwin ISBN: 1 74114 070 6 Public price: AU$ 29.95 This book should be available at Amazon.com: check this page REVIEW: Where the ancestors walked is a rich, well-sourced and well-researched account of Australian Aboriginal culture and australianist anthropology. While not intended for a highly specialised readership, the latter will find in this work a helpful recall of literature and anthropological conceptions that may have disappeared in the background of everyday scientific practices. Indeed, as the author explains himself, he attempts ìto offer an overview to help interpret the wealth of literature written about Aboriginal Australiaî (p. xi), which indeed is a praiseworthy enterprise considering that the AIATSIS (Australian Institute for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies) library holds far over 30000 documents on Aboriginal culture and that the number of publication is ever-growing. Clarke does obviously not cover all these documents, but, no doubt, mentions and for many discusses the most important ones necessary in the understanding of Aboriginal culture on the one hand, and for tracing the history of Australianist anthropology on the other hand. The book is divided into four parts. Part I: Origins of Aboriginal Australia, presents the history of the first Australian colonisation, including some discussion on archaeologistsí work on the subject, but does also confront this ìhistoryî with Aboriginal conceptions of the ìoriginsî through a presentation of the religious system. Part II: Materials of Culture, is an extensive presentation of Australian Aboriginal material culture. The author, Head of Anthropology at the South Australian Museum, is well situated for such considerations, and this part greatly benefits from his expertise. Part III: Regional Differences, presents the various facets of Australian Aboriginal culture. Indeed, one of the most common received ideas about Australia is a supposed unity of culture, language, religious systems etc., neglecting the existence of more than 200 languages that were spoken 200 years ago, and the various cultural forms Aboriginal Australia displays. This part is a helpful attempt to work against such stereotypes of cultural monotony, while nevertheless showing how and where there is unity in Aboriginal culture. Part IV: Cultural Change, traces the history and discusses the effects of colonisation on Aboriginal culture(s) through an analysis of the idea of cultural change. Importantly, Clarke does work against another common stereotype, that of a static traditional Aboriginal culture, and shows how change induced by colonisation can to some extend be considered as a continuation, but, to another extend, has induced dramatic transformations. Where the ancestors walked is a welcome introduction to Australian Aboriginal culture as it was, or is likely to have been, in the early days of colonisation (not without some consideration of the more recent historical phases and the associated cultural changes). Its principal value is twofold: First, it is a readable introduction to Aboriginal culture for the general public and students, a value that is enhanced by the existence of short chapters within the larger parts of the book, each approaching one particular subject or question. The second particular value of the book is its extensive and discussed bibliography, which provides the reader with the opportunity to follow up some specific question or interest. In this respect, however, it is unfortunate that the publisher has chosen to list the references to the cited bibliography not within the text itself, but as endnotes. While this format does greatly enhance the visual aspect of the book and text, it makes a ìscientificî and informed reading a tiring exercise. I do recommend Where the ancestors walked to all those that need a general overview of the history and principles of Australian Aboriginal culture, whether they have or not an educational background in anthropology.